Method of extracting fruit juices



Nov. 22, 1938. R. PCDLK', $R., ET AL 2,137,414 Y METHOD OF EXTRACT-ING FRUI'I JUICES Filed June 3, 1937 INVENTORJ. .7544 3/1 a. m!

ATTORNEYS.

Patented Nov. 22, 1938 PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF EXTRACTING FRUIT JUICES Ralph Polk, Sn, Miami, and Ralph Polk, Jr.,

Haines City, Fla.

Application June 3, 1937, Serial No. 146,166

' 1 Claim.

The object of our invention is to provide an improved method and means for extracting fruit juices, more particularly the juices of citrus fruits, in such manner that the extracted juice will be substantially free of the bitter juices carried in and upon the integuments of the fruit.

The accompanying drawing is an axial section of our improved apparatus, by means of which our improved method may be practiced.

We have found that, when the integuments of citrus fruit are subjected to a rubbing or pressing action for the purpose of breaking the juice containing cells and extracting the juice therefrom, the extracted juice contains an objectionable bitter constituent which is derived from the integuments, but that if the juice containing cells are ruptured by impact and juice drained from the debris without substantial rubbing or pressing, a much higher grade of juice, lacking the aforesaid bitter constituent, is obtainable.

In the mechanical production of integumentfree segments of citrus fruit, particularly of grapefruit, the major portion of the external skin or rind is removed and preferably the subjacent'peripheral portions of the segmental integuments are also removed as a preliminary to the removal of the whole segmental groups of unruptured juice cells and in this operation several of the segmentalgroups of cells of each fruit are left untouched or'partially broken so that the debris, comprising the core and. radiating segment integument Walls, carries a considerable volume of fruit juice which, heretofore, h as'generally been discarded because of the accompanying bitter constituent of the juices extracted by rubbing or pressure. 7

According to our present invention, this juice carrying dbris is delivered through a spout I0 into a rotating drum II having a screen periphery l2 and inwardly projecting forwarding flights Hi. The drum II is supported by hollow shafts l4, l4 and driven", at a relatively low speed, by

any suitable means as through the medium of pulley I 5. Journaled in hollow shafts l4, I4 is a shaft 20 extending through drum I I and carryme. within the drum, an octagonal beater drum 2| on the faces of. which are carried angularly set beater flights 22. The heater drum 2| is rotated at relatively high speed by any suitable means as through the medium of pulley 23. One

' head of drum II is perforated circumferentially 5 at 24 to permit the dbris, forwarded by flights [3, to discharge into a waste chute 25.

Subtending drum H is a juice trough 26 provided with an outlet conduit 21.

Drum 2| being rotated at relatively high speed 1 and drum H being rotated at relatively low speed, the juice bearing fruit elements are delivered into drum H through trough l0 and, falling therefrom, are batted by the flights 22 so as to strike screen l2. Theythen. fall or are car- 15 ried to the lower part of drum l I and, by flights l3 elevated to again fall from flights l3 into the path of movement of the batting flights 22, this operation being repeated as the material is forwarded, by reason of the inclination of the 2 flights l3, to ultimately emerge from drum ll through perforations 24.

The speed of rotatlon of drum ll, may, if it is desired,- be sufficient to develop some centrifugal force in the juice to cause it to pass 25 through screen 12 but must be low enough to permit the materials to drop from the upper region of the drum ll into the path of the beater flights 22.

While whole peeled citrus fruits may be treated 30 in the manner above described, our apparatus and method are primarily designed for the handling of partially desegmented fruits.

We claim as our invention:

The method of extracting juice from cltrus- 35 fruit juice-cells dissociated from peel but associated with inedible integuments which consists -in repeated batting of freely-falling juice-cellintegument masses, propelling the masses out of the zone of the batting action collecting the 40 masses and straining the juices therefrom, returning the masses and dropping them into the batting zone for further batting.

RALPH POLK, SR. 

